A grumpy little old man kept complaining from the sidelines while the students on the court remained focused on the match. Wakatoshi Ushijim
A grumpy little old man kept complaining from the sidelines while the students on the court remained focused on the match. Wakatoshi Ushijim
A grumpy little old man kept complaining from the sidelines while the students on the court remained focused on the match. Wakatoshi Ushijima's usual icy mask finally cracked when he saw Yuma Kikuzawa's powerful spike, his gaze shifting with slight surprise as he looked directly at someone from Aoba Johsai other than Oikawa for the first time.
Under the scrutinizing gaze of Japan's top three ace, Yuma Kikuzawa responded with a cold smirk.
...What are you staring at? Someone who couldn't win nationals despite four chances in two years (one Inter-High and one Spring High each year)!
PS: Shiratorizawa's best national tournament performance was reaching the quarterfinals.
While other Aoba Johsai players might have psychological trauma facing the "Absolute King," Yuma Kikuzawa felt no such fear.
Top-tier talent? Bone-chilling pressure? Overwhelming strength? Wasn't that just like Yuuki?!
Yuma was all too familiar with this.
Noticing his opponents' wariness, Yuma picked up the volleyball and flashed a brilliant smile.
"Don't look so tense, everyone. You're worrying too soon." Because the real show was just beginning.
"Yuma! Serve a good one!"
"Go Yuma-chan! Score ten straight points! We're counting on you!"
During the rotation, when it became Aoba Johsai's turn with Yuma serving, the four third-years seemed to grow devil horns as they eagerly anticipated their opponents' coming breakdown.
"Is that a jump serve?"
Seeing Yuma's tossing and approach, Shiratorizawa immediately recognized the Aoba Johsai freshman's jump serve skill. However, their own first-year Tsutomu Goshiki also possessed a powerful jump serve, so they weren't particularly concerned.
They soon realized their mistake.
The gap between individuals could be enormous, and the difference between jump serves could span entire levels.
Boom!
A thunderous impact. Before Goshiki could even see the ball, he felt the ground tremble near his right foot, followed by the sound of impact behind him.
The volleyball first landed between Goshiki and Kenjirō Shirabu, then ricocheted with terrifying force to smash against the wall.
The Shiratorizawa players looked down to see a clear mark where the ball had landed.
"You idiots!" Coach Washijo pointed at his players and began yelling. "Do I need to remind you to guard against opponents?! 'Give your all against any enemy!' Did you feed everything I taught you to dogs?! If you want to slack off, go lie in coffins! Don't embarrass yourselves on my court!"
Coach Washijo sat back down, arms crossed, nostrils flaring. His players had grown too comfortable under Ushijima's protection, becoming arrogant and prone to underestimating opponents. He hoped this match against the "new Aoba Johsai" would knock them back to reality.
"Here comes the demon coach."
Takahiro Hanamaki whispered to Issei Matsukawa.
"Compared to Coach Washijo, Coach Irihata and Coach Mizoguchi are practically angels."
Not only did upperclassmen fear Coach Washijo's temper - even Yuma was startled by this spit-flying tirade.
...Thank goodness I didn't choose Shiratorizawa. Whether I could adapt is one thing, but if Yuuki had to face a coach who yelled daily, he'd definitely become a withdrawn child.
While entertaining these random thoughts, Yuma's hands never stopped moving. He retrieved the ball and returned to the service area.
First serve was a right-handed power shot. What should the second be? Ah, having too many skills is such a burden~
"Tweeeet—"
The referee's whistle signaled preparation for service.
Yuma quickly cleared his mind, taking a deep breath to focus.
The silver-haired youth lightly tossed the ball upward, began his approach - one step, two steps, three... then pushed off the ground, leaping high with legs bent back as his left arm swung forcefully—
Boom!
The spot where palm met ball instantly dented as the yellow-and-blue sphere left an afterimage barely visible to the naked eye, teleporting to appear above Shiratorizawa's court before precisely landing on the back line - not an inch more, not an inch less.
A perfect line drive.
"Tweeeet—"
Score: Aoba Johsai 6 - Shiratorizawa 1
"Whoo! (Nice!)"
Yuma excitedly clenched his fist.
His serving precision couldn't match a genius like Yuuki's, so this line drive had been a gamble - fortunately, he'd won.
Closing his eyes, Yuma stretched his fingers, recalling the serve's sensation. He needed to remember this feeling, to make line drives a reliably reproducible technique.
Seeing Aoba Johsai's consecutive points, Coach Washijo finally couldn't remain seated, calling a timeout.
As Shiratorizawa gathered, Satori Tendo tilted his head, carefully observing Yuma drinking water on Aoba Johsai's side.
"Something feels... off. That guy's serve just now used... his left hand?"
Tendo sounded uncertain.
Hearing this, Shiratorizawa's players immediately stirred.
Coach Washijo snorted coldly: "Not completely stupid after all. Tendo's right - that Aoba Johsai player served right-handed first, then switched to left."
Shirabu frowned: "Then he's like Ushijima-senpai... no, if he's ambidextrous, he'd have an advantage over Ushijima-senpai."
Goshiki brimmed with fighting spirit: "Aoba Johsai actually has such a player! I can't wait to continue!"
After listening briefly, Coach Washijo interrupted: "I wanted to test your adaptability, but clearly you're far from ready!"
Since Ushijima joined, Shiratorizawa had never trailed by 5 points at the start. Washijo had intended to let them solve problems independently, but now realized intervention was necessary.
Frowning deeply, Washijo shared his intel: "That server is Yuma Kikuzawa. Aoba Johsai has another silver-haired player - Yuuki Kikuzawa. These twins won this year's national middle school championship. Both excel at powerful jump serves and jump floaters. Now that you know, pull yourselves together! We absolutely cannot lose this match!"
Hearing this, Shiratorizawa understood their opponents' caliber. But no matter how impressive the enemy's credentials, Shiratorizawa wouldn't falter easily - not when they had Ushijima, their "Absolute Ace."
Years of victories had forged Shiratorizawa's unique arrogance and confidence.
"Stop overthinking! Get the ball to our ace and win through absolute strength!"
"Yes!" ×N
...
"Still can't match their mentality."
Seeing Shiratorizawa's high morale, Yuma set down his water bottle and shook his head.
Though Aoba Johsai equally desired victory, their confidence fell short of Shiratorizawa's. Perhaps their repeated defeats against Shiratorizawa over two years had gradually eroded their self-belief.
Matches weren't just about ability - morale and mentality were equally crucial to victory.
"Yuma-chan, what were you saying just now?"
Oikawa, ever attentive to his teammates, came over to ask.
"Ah, nothing. Just talking to myself."
Yuma smiled.
Lacking confidence didn't matter - they'd gain it by winning more.
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